Re: Say NO NO NO to Wal-Mart!!!

Just In Time wrote:
> Say NO NO NO to Wal-Mart!!!
>
> Walmart has gotten too big and it uses its power to exert over us. No
> one can blame Wal-Mart for being abusive afterall, it's us, the
> consumers, who gave the power to them! We are irresponsible and greedy
> because we want the cheapest prices! I have to admit that I am guilty
> as well as I do shop occasionally at you know where! (but that's to
> change from now on)


The reason Wal-Mart has done so well and gotten so big is their never 
ending pursuit of taking care of their customers.  Sam Walton never 
stopped trying to find ways to improve customer satisfaction, to lower 
cost and prices, and to provide products the customers wanted.  A major 
part of Wal-Mart stock belongs to employees, or "associates" as Sam 
called them.

Sam saw the "discount" stores in some big cities and thought that would 
be good in small towns all across America.  Sam tried first to sell his 
ideas to the management of Ben Franklin stores where he worked.  They 
wouldn't let him try his new plan, so Sam quit and started his own 
store.  The other big chains ignored him for years, not believing that 
an upstart from some small town in Arkansas could be a threat to giants 
like K-Mart, Sears, etc.  But Sam kept trying to provide everything you 
want under one roof, and for a low price.

Wal-Mart succeeds while others fail because of their commitment to the 
customers.  Yes, many other stores have closed because customers to to 
Wal-Mart instead.  Even Giants like K-Mart have not learned to compete 
with customer focused retail.

Wal-Mart is not evil for serving the needs of people better than anyone 
else.  Other stores must learn to serve customers or die.  There is a 
place for other stores, but not for those who put high profit margins 
and poor selection, what the store wants to sell, ahead of the needs of 
customers.

So go ahead and shop somewhere else if you like, pay more for less, and 
drive around to 5 or 6 stores looking for what you want.  Bob went to 
Wal-Mart last night.  We bought bedding, auto parts, food, beverage, RV 
accessories, hardware, and kitchen supplies all at prices as low or 
lower than anywhere else.  One trip and we were done shopping.

It's an old formula that Sam's store does better.  Take care of the 
customers.  Meet their needs.  Provide what people want.  Funny how a 
dumb hick from some small town in Arkansas had to teach that formula to 
industrial giants from big cities.


> After reading this article "The Wal-Mart You Don't Know" by Charles
> Fishman (Fast Company) Dec 2003.
> (http://go.jitbot.com/no-to-wal-mart), you'll know that:
>
> - Jobs are lost everyday because of Wal-Mart
> - Factories / companies die because of Wal-Mart.
> - Too much power is given to a single entity, Wal-Mart.

As long as nobody else takes care of customers as well Wal-Mart will 
drive them out of business.


> let's stop this madness for a change. Be responsible!
>
> - As a consumer, be reasonable, there is no need to shop everything at
> Wal-Mart. Don't go for cheap...Look for value. Are you getting the
> service you want from Wal-mart? Last time I went, I waited a long line
> to pay at the cash. When I had to return an item...the waiting was
> longer!


LOL.  Value often is good products for less money. Same product at 20% 
less price is a good value for the customer.  And when when we wanted to 
shop on THanksgiving Wal-Mart was open.  Nobody else was.


> - As a supplier, be rational! Increasing short-term sales and profits
> by supplying to Wal-Mart, while squeezing your margins and destroying
> your brands is the quickest way to brankruptcy court. If price is the
> only way you can think of competing, then, you already lost the war to
> the Chineses!

LOL.  As a supplier Martha Steward hooked up with K-Mart.  It sure 
helped her didn't it.


> - As an Investor, stop buying the stock of WMT if believe that the
> long-term effects will bear negative consequences to the whole
> economy. There is no pleasure to make money in the stock market, to
> find out how many jobs have lost because of you.

Most Wal-Mart stock belongs to their own employees.  As investors, if 
you you don't want to share in the profits, buy K-mart and go broke. Go 
right ahead.


> Don't get me wrong, I am a champion of the free-markets. 

Like hell you are.


> I believe we
> have our responsibilities to take. We don't need the government to
> step in one day like they did to Microsoft. Let's be responsible for a
> change.

You are right.  The government ought not protect incompetent merchants 
who focus on their own profits rather than on the needs of their 
customers.


> By the way, a little more about me, I am a Canadian Chinese, a
> business owner (tech-related company and in no way, a supplier of
> Wal-mart) and I don't own WMT stocks.

LOL.  So you would love to get Wal-Mart out of the way so you can sell 
products at inflated prices and make more money.  Sorry Charlie, if 
other companies tried to learn the formula instead of crying over 
Wal-Mart's success, they wouldn't have had the whole market practically 
to themselves.


> Please spread this word around, it's for our own good.
> Cheers!
> Jeff

Hey, I'll go down to Wal-Mart and tell the associates what you said.

One nice thing Bob likes about Wal-Mart is that its the only store that 
puts the Men's clothing section at the front of the store, not in some 
hidden corner behind Women's clothing.  Wal-Mart actually wants men to 
be customers, and shows that attitude by providing products and service 
for men in an equal way.

Bob